The attitude of man towards the non-human environment has differed profoundly at different times. The modern techniques has revived the sense of the collective power of human communities. Man, formerly too humble, begins to think of himself as almost a god.… In all this I feel a grave danger, the danger of what might be called cosmic impiety. The concept of ‘truth’ as something dependent upon facts largely outside human control has been one of the ways in which philosophy hitherto has inculcated the necessary element of humility. When this check upon pride is removed, a further step is taken on the road towards a certain kind of madness—the intoxication of power which invaded philosophy… and to which modern men, whether philosophers or not, are prone. I am persuaded that this intoxication is the greatest danger of our time….”
If you can sum anything with the phrase "in a nut shell" . . . you better leave it there ...
- - - Bertrand Russell, A History of Western Philosophy
